fpic as Peacebuilding Tool?

Abstract

Although wide-ranging in scope, a core principle embedded throughout the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is the right to free, prior and informed consent (fpic). Given the widespread nature of protracted struggles over land involving Indigenous peoples, some argue fpic could provide a powerful tool to prevent and resolve land conflicts. Using a case study of the Indigenous Batwa in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the paper examines the promises and perils of employing fpic as a peacebuilding tool. Specifically, it contrasts two land-related conflicts involving the Batwa: (1) the Batwa’s recent attempts to reclaim territories lost via the creation of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park and (2) the decade-long conflict pitting the Batwa and Luba people. In so doing, the analysis explores the role of the proposed ‘Organic bill’, which aims to recognise Indigenous peoples’ right to fpic. This serves to highlight both the limitations and potential dangers of adopting an Indigenous rights framework to resolve land conflict in certain political contexts.